So I have been looking forward to today and praying for you.
It's been great to meet some of you already.
It's been exciting to hear about what God's doing here and in your collection of churches.
So I want to speak to you this morning about love and particularly love is the mark of holiness.
Actually, I think I have a lot to learn about loving others.
But God's taught me some things from his word, my experience, and I want to share those this morning.
So if you would, would you open up with me to the book of 1 Corinthians?
I'll give you the page number.
If you have one of the church Bibles, it's 1 Corinthians 13 and it begins on page 1153.
Many of you will know that this is the well-known chapter on love.
So why don't you follow along as I read it for us.
I'm going to read all of chapter 13.
If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.
If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge,
and if I have faith that can move mountains but have not love, I'm nothing.
If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames but have not love, I gain nothing.
Love is patient.
Love is kind.
It does not envy.
It does not boast.
It's not proud.
It's not rude.
It's not self-seeking.
It's not easily angered.
It keeps no record of wrongs.
Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.
It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
Love never fails, but when there are prophecies, they will cease.
Where there are tongues, they will be stilled.
Where there is knowledge, it will pass away.
For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when the perfect comes, the imperfect disappears.
When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child.
When I became a man, I put away childish ways behind me.
Now we see but a poor reflection as in the mirror.
Then we shall see face to face.
Now I know in part.
Then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.
And now these three remain, faith, hope, and love.
But the greatest of these is love.
Why don't we just pray for a moment again.
Father, we thank you for the time that we've had already,
the encouragement of singing your word and being together.
Father, and God, we pray that you would graciously meet us with your spirit right now.
Lord, we pray that our own hearts would be filled with love for you
and reminded and instructed in how our calling is to love you and to love one another.
So help us towards that end, Father.
Help us to think about our own lives
and what that really should look like in the course of everyday life.
And God, we pray, give us minds and hearts right now that are focused on you
and see the things that you say in your word to us.
We pray this in Christ's name.
Amen.
Before we just jump in and look at the text,
I want to spend a few minutes saying something that I hope will be helpful
as we think about what it looks like
and how we should be thinking about loving one another.
God often uses the small, ordinary, everyday events of life
to work in us, to change us,
to show us the greater degrees that we need to grow in love.
Don't you think that?
I was just mentioning a few minutes ago
that I'm slowly renovating my home.
And I do mean slowly.
My wife would say very slowly.
Ella, my five-year-old daughter's bedroom,
is the most recent part of our house that we've renovated.
The thing that I did before that was the bathroom,
which sort of abuts to her room.
And to do all the work on the plumbing,
I had to basically break down half of her room.
And she went back in her room.
There are all kinds of pipes and things exposed.
So she was in there, and the plaster was falling off,
and there's pipes everywhere.
And that was her room.
So that was the room that had to get renovated next.
And so night after night,
slowly over the course of a few months,
whenever I'd have time,
I would go in and put up new walls and new ceiling
and strip all the molding.
And I put up new crown.
And then I painted all of her furniture.
And I painted her room.
And finally, after a long time,
her room was complete.
And it was just the kind of clean, bright room
that any five-year-old girl, I think, would love to have.
So the night after I finished her room,
we had two of our close family friends over.
And those two family friends of you are smiling already.
You know where this story's going.
But they had three little girls,
my little girl Ella's age.
And they went up,
and they played in her room all night.
And I just thought, how fantastic.
You know, I finished her room,
and they'd usually be all around.
And they just were able to play there for the whole night.
It was just great.
And then at one point in the night,
we were sitting, the three couples,
around our dinner table.
And Ella and her three friends came down
in their, like, most beautiful little princess gowns.
And they had taken hand lotion
and slathered it all over their hair.
And they came walking down the stairs,
and we're, like, horrified looking at them.
They think they're looking all cute and twirling around.
We're sort of trying to hide our horror.
And it was kind of a hint
about what was happening up in that room.
I should have clued in at that moment.
Anyway, the night came to an end,
and we said goodbye to our friends
and walked them out the door.
And I took little Ella back up to her room
to say goodnight.
Now, remember, I've been working on this room
for, like, three months.
I'm a little bit of a perfectionist,
so I had it just how I wanted every last bit.
And I walk in,
and on the pristine baseboards and furniture
is bright blue little girl nail polish everywhere.
And beside it was cleaning products,
so they must have realized what they did
and tried to clean it.
And I thought, oh, Ella,
and frustration and anger and annoyance,
all the things that can so easily well up
in these ordinary, everyday moments.
Or when we grow in love and holiness,
we slowly start to respond differently
to those times, don't we?
I think there's some symbolism in that
for you and for me.
During, as I think about my own renovation,
you know, the day-to-day work of renovating
happens so slowly,
and often you don't really see the progress, right?
Or you might come into a room,
and unless you knew what had happened
underneath all the walls
and where you started from,
it doesn't look like very much has happened.
And I think our sanctification
and our growth in love often looks that way.
You can kind of just take a snapshot of a moment
and feel maybe like you're stuck in the same place,
when really, even though it's been maybe imperceptibly
and you can't see it on a day-to-day basis,
but you truly have actually been growing
in love as time has gone on.
And then after some time has gone on,
one day you sort of turn around
and you kind of do see some of that great work
that God's been doing in your life,
and you no longer have to go into the house
and redo every room.
God's done some great renovating work
in your life and your heart,
and that's encouraging, I think.
There's a part in James
that I've been reflecting on
over the last number of months
where James addresses in his letter,
in chapter 4,
these Christians that have just really
not been loving God the way that they should.
And maybe that's how,
that's where you find your own heart today,
perhaps,
that there's a sense that you haven't been loving God
the way that you want,
and you feel that particularly
in how your own heart
isn't as warm in love for others.
And what James says to those very people
in his letter is,
but God gives more grace.
I love that part of James.
You've been far from God.
You feel far from Him.
You haven't loved Him the way that you should.
You don't deserve His grace,
but He gives more grace.
I think that's
such an encouraging thing to think about
as we think about
how we want to grow in love.
So,
with the hopefulness of God's promise
of grace in mind,
let's turn our thoughts back
to this text in 1 Corinthians now.
So we're going to dive in in a moment.
I just read it for us.
I've got a question for you
about this.
How many of you have been to a wedding?
It's a pretty innocuous question,
so don't be afraid to raise your hand.
How many of you have been to a wedding?
You don't have to commit too much
to say you've been to a wedding.
How many of you have been to a wedding
where 1 Corinthians 13
has been read or preached?
Okay,
they do that here too.
That's good.
And why not?
It's lovely.
It's poetic.
It's beautiful.
But when I read 1 Corinthians 13,
did you hear anything
about romantic love or marriage?
No.
I think this passage
and what God says through its words
have some very important things
to say to us,
but we will have trouble seeing them
if we don't realize
that this passage
is not actually about,
in the first place,
romantic love.
So I want to show you
just for a moment
that it's not about love
and actually what it is about.
So you can actually see
in this translation,
if you look at the verse
that comes right before chapter 13,
it's actually set in
in this paragraph.
It's verse,
the end of chapter 12.
Paul says right here,
before he gets to chapter 13,
and now I will show you
the most excellent way
or the more excellent way.
This is what Paul says
he's going to go on to do
in chapter 13.
It's pretty clear
that he's saying that
love is this most excellent way,
but more excellent than what?
What's the context?
Well, if you look back
in the beginning of chapter 12
with me to verse 1,
Paul begins this chapter
that leads into chapter 13
saying,
now about spiritual gifts, brothers.
The context here really
is spiritual gifts.
And the context in the church
in Corinth
was that there were
certain people
that had gifts,
spiritual gifts,
particularly the gift
of speaking in tongues
that thought that
because they had that gift,
they were the ones
that were more important,
more valuable,
and that everyone else,
frankly,
that didn't have that gift
was maybe not so important.
So Paul writes to them
in chapter 12
and says,
no, you know what?
Actually,
God's very intentionally
designed the church
in a way
where he's given different gifts
to different Christians
and he's done that
because that's what's required
to build up the church.
So God's done that on purpose
because all of those gifts
are necessary
for the edification
and the upbuilding
of the church.
So what does Paul mean
when he says,
I will show you
a more excellent way?
He's making some kind
of comparison
between spiritual gifts
and love.
But if you look again
at verse 31,
even just before
where we read there,
the beginning of verse 31,
Paul says,
but eagerly desire
the greater gifts.
So right up to the passage
we're looking at,
Paul's been explaining
how there are
these greater gifts.
He gives this list
in verse 27
of how God first gave
apostles
and then prophets
and then teachers
and last tongues.
Later on in chapter 14,
he talks about how
the gift of tongues
is one thing
because it edifies yourself,
but prophecy
is greater
because of how
it builds up
other people.
And the Corinthians
had fallen into thinking
that if you had
those gifts
that were more miraculous,
more showy,
that put you up front,
those were the really
important gifts.
And if you had those,
man,
you were really spiritual.
And Paul says,
no, you're wrong.
Those gifts are important.
All gifts are important.
And there are
greater gifts,
but the greater gifts
aren't the showy gifts.
It's the gifts
that do the most
in terms of
building other people up.
That's what makes
a gift great.
So he says,
earnestly desire
those gifts,
but,
then verse 31,
I will still show you
a more excellent way.
So all that's to say
the contrast
that Paul's making here
as we get into
chapter 13
is he's saying,
more important
than all spiritual gifts,
even the greatest ones,
is love.
More important
than all spiritual gifts
is love.
So we're going to look
at chapter 13
and here's what
I want you to know
and how I want you
to be thinking about it.
This chapter really answers
the question,
how do you live
a worthy,
godly,
holy,
Christian life?
And the context
has already been set out
that a meaningful,
valuable,
God-honoring life
that's worthy
of the gospel
is one that
builds up the church,
that uses your gifts
and your life
to edify others,
to bless others,
and to build them up,
that loves the Christians
well around you,
that edifies
and encourages
and comforts.
And then Paul comes
to chapter 13
in that context
and he says,
I'm going to give you
the answer
of how you first
and foremost
live that worthy life
that builds
other people up
and the way
that you do that
first and foremost
is through love.
That's what Paul
is explaining here
in chapter 13.
So we're going to look
at three realities
about love
that we need to learn
about today.
Love's importance,
love's character,
and love's nature.
Paul talks about
love's importance
in verse 1 through 3
and that's really
the heart
of this whole passage.
He's going to say
some other things
but they all really
are to this great point
that that church
and we would feel
just how important
love is
for our lives
as Christians.
That's verse 1 through 3,
love's importance.
And then in 4 through 7
love's character.
Then 8 through 13
love's nature.
So how important
is love?
I just said a minute ago
that love is
the reality
that really makes
a Christian life worthy.
So was that rhetorical
or was that
stretching it a bit?
How important
is love
for your life?
Think about that.
Let's see what
Paul says here
in verse 1 through 3
about love's importance.
Let me read it
for us again.
If I speak
in the tongues
of men
and of angels
but have not love,
I am only
a resounding gong
or a clanging cymbal.
If I have the gift
of prophecy
and can fathom
all mysteries
and all knowledge
and if I have a faith
that can move mountains
but have not love,
I am nothing.
If I give all
I possess
to the poor
and surrender
my body
to the flames
but have not love,
I gain nothing.
So let's imagine
for a second
that I have
the gift of tongues
and we'll just
for example's sake
assume that
that's some kind
of unknown
human language
that I know
that I have
that ability
to speak in
and on top
of that
I have some kind
of majestic
angelic gift
I can somehow
speak in the language
of angels.
Pretty helpful.
Imagine,
it certainly is
if you would think
about how it would
work out
so you're the guy
that I came
and I shared
the gospel with
in your own
native language
right?
And I've never
learned your language
but because of
the gift of tongues
I was able to
share the gospel
with you
in a language
that you understood
even though I
never learned it
and you came
to faith
pretty helpful
right?
It certainly
was for that
foreigner that
would have come
to faith
but Paul says
but if you don't
have love
even if you
can do that
you're still
nothing.
You're like
a clanging
cymbal
or
empty
ringing
brass
like a brass
shield
clinking
off the ground
or resounding
brass
just things
that sound
hollow
and tinny.
So you have
these incredible
gifts
genuinely
incredible
but don't
have love
what are you?
Paul says
it's empty
and hollow
and notice
he doesn't
actually say
the gifts
are empty
and hollow
he says
I am hollow
I am empty.
Or he moves
on
he gives
a second
example
he says
what if
you have
prophetic
powers?
He's already
talked about
in this
letter
about how
genuinely
edifying
prophecy
was.
He says
not only
do you
have
prophecy
but you
know
all mystery
and all
knowledge
so you
just know
it all
you understand
all of
God's
ways
his plan
our
lives
sanctification
so you
know
someone
experiences
great
tragedy
maybe
they
lose
someone
under
really
difficult
circumstances
and they
come to
you
and you
know
exactly
what to
say
and how
to
counsel
them
you
have
all
mystery
and all
knowledge
and on
top of
that
you
have
great
faith
this
deep
faith
that
proverbially
can
move
a mountain
like
Jesus
had once
talked
about
so
faith
that
can
inspire
a
generation
of
Christians
you
have
all
of
that
but
Paul
says
but
if
you
don't
have
love
you're
nothing
no matter
how much
good
you can
do
it
doesn't
count
for
anything
in
God's
sight
and he
gets to
the last
example
which I
think is
so
powerful
here
he
says
what
if
you
give
away
everything
you
have
or
if
like
this
translation
renders
it
what
if
you
give
up
your
body
to
be
burned
right
you're
you know
honey
I
was
on
the
way
home
and
I
met
this
guy
and
he
said
they
just
don't
have
what
they
need
so
I
gave
him
my
entire
paycheck
for
the
month
or
you
know
if
you
don't
recant
you're
going
to be
burned
at
the
stake
and
you
don't
recant
and
you
are
burned
at
the
stake
for
your
faith
and
surely
those
things
in
themselves
have
to
have
some
kind
of
there
has
to
be
some
kind
of
honor
in
those
actions
just
in
themselves
because
of
their
very
nature
but
Paul
says
even
if
you
do
that
and
you
don't
have
love
you
actually
gain
nothing
it's
not
worthy
in
God's
eyes
he
doesn't
see it
as
pleasing
he's
not
going
to
reward
for
it
D.A.
Carson
if you
know
that
name
a
Bible
scholar
says
if
Paul
were
addressing
the
modern
church
perhaps
he
would
extrapolate
further
and
say
you
know
you
Christians
who
prove
your
spirituality
by
the
amount
of
theological
knowledge
that
you
can
cram
in
your
heads
I
tell
you
that
such
knowledge
by
itself
proves
nothing
or
you
who
affirm
the
spirit's
presence
in
your
meetings
because
there's
a certain
style
of
worship
whatever
that
style
is
if
your
patterns
are not
expressions
of
love
it's
spiritually
bankrupt
so
how
important
is
love
without
love
theological
knowledge
all
kinds
of
personal
dedication
to
God
eloquent
sermons
all
the
service
that
you
do
all
the
sacrifice
if
it's
not
driven
by
love
Paul
says
it's
empty
it's
not
what
it
should
be
that
same
scholar
D.A.
Carson
says
when you
look at
the
five
scenarios
here
about
gifts
and
sacrifice
compared
to
love
according
to
divine
mathematics
five
minus
one
equals
zero
another
brother
said
everything
minus
love
equals
nothing
everything
minus
love
equals
nothing
D.L.
Moody
says
there's
no use
to do
church
work
without
love
a doctor
a lawyer
they may
do
good
work
without
love
but
God's
work
can't
be
done
without
love
now
I think
that's
profoundly
convicting
on one
level
how many
things
have we
done
that haven't
been done
from love
out of
pride
or
whatever
selfishness
or
just
sometimes
very
mere
duty
just
let the
reality
and the
weight
of that
settle
for a
minute
everything
minus
love
equals
nothing
but
here's
what's
also
so
especially
good
I think
about
this
news
now
are you
somebody
at times
that
wonders
how your
life will
count
for much
maybe
you don't
think
you're
particularly
gifted
listen
what God
says
through
Paul
here
is that
if you
grow
in love
if you
grow
in love
your
life
will
count
more
in
God's
eyes
than
if you
had
every
gift
and
ability
it's
amazing
if you
grow
in love
your
life
can
do
others
more
good
than
if you
had
other
gifts
that
you
don't
have
God
will
take
your
life
and
the
gifts
that
you
do
have
and
do
more
good
to
people
than
you
could
have
ever
imagined
if
you
just
grow
in
love
you
think
what
we
do
sometimes
is
small
and
unimportant
right
all
kinds
of
things
seem
that
way
through
the
course
of
life
whether
it's
being
a
mom
at
home
or
smaller
things
that
we
do
in
the
course
of
church
life
Jonathan
Edwards
says
God
delights
in
little
things
when
they
spring
from
sincere
love
to
himself
a
cup
of
cold
water
given
to
a
disciple
and
sincere
love
is
worth
more
in
God's
sight
than
all
one's
goods
given
to
the
poor
even
the
wealth
of
a
kingdom
given
away
or
a
body
offered
up
that's
actually
what
1 Corinthians
says
isn't
it
I
think
these
verses
in
some
ways
cut
through
a lot
of
the
complexities
of
things
that
are
very
complex
right
where
where do
we
pour
our
time
and
energy
in
as
Christians
where
there
can be
so many
layers
sometimes
to the
Christian
life
and
thinking
about
what
God
wants
us
to
do
and
how
we
should
live
our
lives
the
answer
in
one
sense
to
that
is
always
to
pursue
love
so
how
important
is
love
everything
minus
love
equals
nothing
but
you
add
a
little
love
in
front
of
even
the
smallest
of
sacrifices
and
service
and
immediately
it
has
value
that's
what
this
text
says
now
that's
all
in
verse
one
through
three
and
Paul
doesn't
stray
very
far
from
this
in
fact
like
I
was
saying
before
this
is
really
the
heart
of
what
he
wants
us
to
hear
but
he's
going
to
go
on
and
he's
going
to
talk
a
little
bit
about
the
character
of
love
and
he's
going
to
do
that
not
just
in
sort
of
like
an
abstract
fashion
he's
talking
very
love
for
this
church
he's
thinking
about
all
the
different
areas
that
they're
struggling
in
their
love
particularly
in
terms
of
spiritual
gifts
and
he
sets
out
this
description
of
love
for
them
so
it's
very
much
contextual
and
it's
not
comprehensive
but
it's
still
very
helpful
for
us
I
think
because
we
struggle
with
the
same
kinds
of
things
and
have
the
same
issues
below
our
particular
struggles
with
loving
people
as
this
church
did
so
I
want
to
read
this
description
for
us
again
and
secondly
think
with
you
about
love's
character
for a
moment
here
so
after
Paul
makes
this
initial
point
about
how
important
love
is
he
gets
to
verse
4
through
7
and
he
gives
this
description
of
love's
character
and
he
says
love
is
patient
love
is
kind
it
does
not
envy
it
does
not
boast
it
is
not
proud
it
is
not
rude
it
is
not
self
seeking
it
is
not
easily
angered
it
keeps
no
record
of
wrongs
love
does
not
delight
in
evil
but
rejoices
with
the
truth
it
always
protects
always
trusts
always
hopes
always
perseveres
these
descriptions
basically
have
three
parts
it
begins
with
this
sort
of
two
positive
expressions
about
love
at the
beginning
about
how
love
is
patient
and
how
love
is
kind
and
then
he
gives
eight
little
short
descriptions
about
what
love
is
not
or
what
love
doesn't
do
or
the
attitude
that
it
doesn't
have
and
then
he
finishes
off
with
these
four
similar
descriptions
about
how
love
does
these
in
all
things
and
he
picks up
on
those
cardinal
Christian
areas
of
faith
and
hope
and
then
he
comes
back
to
right
where
he
started
back
at
how
love
is
patient
and
enduring
John
Piper
says
when
you
try to
group
all
these
15
into
categories
basically
what we
see
is
descriptions
about
how
love
is
patient
and
it
endures
and
about
how
love
is
not
proud
I
think
about
that
do
those
describe
us
we
think
about
our
lives
our
life
within
our
home
and
our
church
think
about
the
things
we
say
and
don't
say
and
do
and
don't
do
here's
what
God
says
must
characterize
our
interaction
for them
to be
loving
you
must
be
patient
first
of
all
not
expecting
things
to go
your
way
or
feeling
justified
when
they
don't
to
be
angry
or
frustrated
or
annoyed
but
just
the
opposite
actually
expecting
that
there
will
be
things
obstacles
hard
things
and
because
of
that
being
ready
to
suffer
those
things
to
be
long
suffering
and
patient
not
going
home
with
kids
and
expecting
everything
to
go
okay
right
because
it
doesn't
but
being
ready
that
that's
what
we
signed
up
for
you
must
not
be
or
you
must
be
kind
secondly
treat
other
people
with
the
same
kind
of
understanding
and
thoughtfulness
and
consideration
that we
would
always
want
to be
shown
to
us
no
matter
what
you
must
not
be
envious
jealously
competitive
I'm
always
comparing
I'm
secretly
happy
when
success
doesn't
happen
for that
other
person
or
boastful
bragging
about
yourself
or
proud
arrogantly
thinking
for whatever
reason
you're
great
or
special
or
rude
Paul
uses
that
in
the
sense
of
things
that
are
indecent
that
are
against
sort
of
what's
the
common
standard
of
decency
or
how
about
this
one
insisting
on
your
own
way
just
being
concerned
with
what's
good
for
you
as
opposed
to
being
concerned
about
what's
good
for
others
or
irritable
easily
angered
or
resentful
holding
on to
what
others
have
done
and
feeling
a
level
of
annoyance
or
cold
or
bitter
to
them
he
says
you
must
not
rejoice
at
evil
things
that
are
wrong
that
aren't
good
but
instead
rejoice
with
the
truth
the
very
things
that
are
beautiful
and
good
set
out
that
way
in
God's
word
and
he
says
you
have
to
bear
all
things
and
believe
all
things
and
hope
all
things
and
endure
all
things
in
other
words
he
says
you
know
love
is
not
naive
but
love
doesn't
set
limits
on
what
it
will
endure
it
perseveres
it
doesn't
quit
on
people
that
that's
what
God
says
here
is
our
measurement
for
how
he
calls
us
to
love
to
treat
other
people
and
that's
really
what
I
want
and
what
you
should
want
if
we
think
about
the
priority
that's
given
to
love
here
you
think
about
your
Christian
life
what
should
you
want
I
think
above
all
other
things
in
one
sense
we
can
say
that
our
great
desire
should
be
and
our
great
prayer
should
be
God
cause
me
to
be
someone
that
loves
more
that
loves
you
more
and
loves
others
more
like
this
that
should
be
what
we
long
for
probably
our
whole
Christian
lives
and
more
than
anything
else
that
God
would
make
us
truly
people
with
all
the
right
biblical
qualifications
about
what
real
love
is
that
God
would
make
us
people
that
are
genuinely
and
deeply
loving
now
Paul's
going to
go on
basically
and he's
going to
say
this
again
he's
just
going to
say
it
in a
he's
going to
say
it
from
a
different
angle
and
then
he's
going
to
actually
leave
us
with
a
very
important
conclusion
after
all
of
this
so
I
want
us
to
see
both
of
them
but
let's
look
at
this
third
section
here
where
Paul's
going
to
really
make
the
same
point
again
about
love's
importance
but he's
going to
do it
from
the angle
of
thinking
about
the
nature
of
love
let me
read
it
fails
but
where
there's
prophecies
they will
cease
where
there
are
tongues
they'll
be
stilled
where
there's
knowledge
it will
pass
away
for
we
know
in
part
and
we
prophesy
in
part
but
when
the
perfect
comes
the
imperfect
disappears
when
I
was
a
child
I
talked
like
a
child
I
thought
like
a
child
I
reasoned
like
a
child
when
I
became
a
man
I
put
away
childish
ways
behind
me
now
know
fully
even
as
I
am
fully
known
and
now
these
three
abide
or
remain
faith
hope
and
love
the
greatest
of
these
is
love
so
he
says
prophecy
it
ends
knowledge
it
ends
it
ends
when
the
perfect
comes
when
we
stay
face
to
face
when
Jesus
returns
and
we
know
we're
resurrected
and we
see
Christ
face
to
face
and
we're
fully
known
as
we
know
fully
as
we're
already
fully
known
and
he
gives
that
comparison
about
how
even
in
human
life
as
we
mature
we
have
to
sort
of
shed
those
immature
undeveloped
things
even
on a
physical
level
and a
character
level
as
we
get
older
the
same
thing
happens
when
we
become
the
mature
people
we
are
in
the
resurrection
there
won't
be
prophecy
there
won't
be
tongues
even
as
marvelous
as
those
gifts
are
they're
still
temporary
and
temporal
they're
part
of
that
fallen
creation
they're
somehow
bound up
with
imperfection
and
immaturity
love
never
ends
it's
of a
nature
and
a
quality
that's
unlike
any
other
spiritual
gift
in
fact
it's
part
of
the
world
to
come
and
I
think
even
despite
the
difficulties
of
making
sense
of
verse
13
here
and
it
is
hard
to
make
sense
of
I
think
Paul
is
making
a
similar
argument
I
think
he's
saying
you
know
faith
and
hope
those
things
are
central
to
our
faith
is
what
saves
us
right
that's
how
we
live
we
live
by
faith
and
hope
is
how
we
live
we
live
constantly
hoping
for
when
Christ
returns
but
faith
is
going
to
end
and
hallelujah
right
one
day
faith
is
going
to
be
gone
nobody
in
this
room
is
going
to
have
faith
anymore
we're
going
to
see
right
and
hope
is
going
to
be
gone
we're
not
going
to
hope
for
anything
anymore
we're
going
to
have
what
we
hope
for
so
six
million
years
into
eternity
and
faith
will be
gone
we'll
see
and
hope
will be
gone
we'll
have
everything
we'll
have
Jesus
but
love
will
still
be
there
love
will
fill
the
entire
earth
the
new
earth
and
Paul
is
saying
again
listen
I'm
trying
to
tell
you
greater
than
spiritual
gifts
even
the
best
of
spiritual
gifts
even
more
important
than
faith
and
hope
in
one
sense
is
love
and
he
brings
it
to
this
conclusion
we can
ask
ourselves
so
what
then
right
where
should
this
bring
us
to
look
at
Paul's
conclusion
here
after
he
gives
this
big
paragraph
about
just
how
central
love
is
he
gets
to
the
end
of
this
and
then
he
says
here
follow
the
way
of
love
or
in
my
translation
that
I
was
reading
earlier
he
says
pursue
love
that's
the
wrap
up
of
the
whole
chapter
right
he
writes
all
he
does
in
first
corinthians
13
to
get
to
that
very
practical
conclusion
for you
and for
I
to say
and to
be
convinced
of the
fact
that
what
we
need
to
do
is
pursue
love
to
make
love
the
priority
of
our
Christian
discipleship
to
see
love
as
the
mark
of
holiness
so
how
do
we
do
that
I
want
to
think
with
you
for
a
moment
about
that
how
do
we
actually
fulfill
this
command
and
pursue
love
I
think
first
of
all
especially
given
these
descriptions
here
that
were
sort
of
meant
as
a
guide
for
this
church
things
that
they
would
see
and
that
they
could
put
on
and
live
out
that
Paul
has
in
mind
first
of
all
here
that
we
pursue
love
by
showing
love
that
we
would
put
on
love
and
demonstrate
love
every
description
here
in
verse
4
through
7
is
a
verb
it's
hard
to
see
in
English
but
they're
all
things
that
we
are
to
do
or
to
put
on
and
you
know
Paul
is
the
one
who
says
to
us
like
in
Romans
for
just
as
you
presented
your
members
as
slaves
to
impurity
and
to
lawlessness
leading
to
more
lawlessness
now
present
your
members
as
slaves
to
righteousness
leading
to
sanctification
he's
the
one
who
says
in
Colossians
put
on
love
this
is
not
a
text
that
says
don't
do
right
for
other
people
until
you
really
feel
that
kind
of
affection
in
your
heart
it
certainly
has
affections
in
mind
and
it's
very
much
getting
at
our
motivations
isn't
it
in
one
sense
the
whole
passage
is
about
motivations
but
in
another
sense
all
of
this
loving
is
viewed
primarily
in
terms
of
doing
and
I
think
what
Paul
is
saying
here
is
you
don't
wait
until
you
just
have
those
proper
affections
love
here
is
actually
just
seeing
that
God
has
called
us
to
do
the
good
things
that
build
each
other
up
and
to
get
on
with
doing
those
things
and
listen
actions
don't
just
follow
affections
but
actions
also
breed
affections
don't
they
actions
produce
habits
and
habits
make
character
and
ultimately
character
is
what
determines
how
we
feel
and
think
about
things
so
Paul
says
put
on
love
present
yourself
to
what's
right
and
loving
stop
yourself
when
you're
sinning
and
doing
the
things
that
are
described
in
this
text
and
instead
change
your
attitude
put
on
patience
put
on
kindness
put
on
what
is
loving
and
it
will
lead
to
a
heart
that's
loving
put
on
what's
loving
and
it
will
lead
to
a
heart
that's
loving
pursue
love
by
showing
love
I think
that's
what he'd
think of
first
but
I can't
imagine
Paul
saying
pursue
love
without
also
us
thinking
about
beholding
love
not just
showing
love
but also
beholding
love
or
how we
actually
have
beheld
love
in
Christ
like
we were
thinking
about
earlier
Romans
5
8
God
shows
God
shows
his
love
for
us
in
that
while
we
were
still
sinners
Christ
died
for
us
or
1
John
3
16
by
this
we
know
love
that
he
laid
down
his
life
for
us
and
we
ought
to
lay
down
our
lives
for
the
brothers
right
the
Christian
message
isn't
first
do
what
God
says
is
that
God
has
made
us
and
he
knows
exactly
what
is
good
for
us
and
he
has
come
to
the
world
in
his
son
to
show
us
his
love
and
he
has
done
that
through
Christ
dying
on
the
cross
for
our
sin
and
rising
again
so
that
he
could
reconcile
us
to
God
and
show
us
the
way
that
leads
to
life
that's
the
love
that
we
know
as
Christians
that's
the
God
that
we
know
that's
the
message
that
we
want
someone
that's
not
following
Christ
to
hear
to
not
look
at
what
we
are
to
do
first
but
to
look
at
the
God
who
has
shown
this
kind
of
love
to
us
and
demonstrated
that
in
his
son
that's
where
the
Christian
life
begins
isn't
it
as
we
repent
of
our
sins
and
we
come
to
God
the
God
who
loves
us
and
really
that's
where
it
has
to
continue
think
about
what
scripture
says
Paul
says
be
imitators
of
God
as
beloved
children
and
walk
in
love
as
Christ
loved
us
and
gave
himself
up
for
us
so
love
is
what
you're
called
to
and
be
loved
is
who
you
are
right
preeminently
who
you
are
as
a
Christian
who
I
am
is
that
we're
beloved
as
we were
hearing
a few
minutes
ago
or
whatever
it
was
more
than
a few
minutes
isn't
it
but
it's
such
a
simple
but
such
an
important
truth
to
remember
that
God
does
love
us
and
that's
preeminently
who
we
are
and
from
that
flows
preeminently
what
we're
called
to
love
others
I
love
Jesus
command
where
he
says
a new
command
I
give
you
that
you
love
one
another
just
as
I
have
loved
you
also
are
to
love
one
another
so
isn't
that
sweet
to
think
about
that
the
love
that
we
have
for
others
is
actually
supposed
to
be
and
really
is
a
reflection
of
the
love
that
Christ
had
and
has
for
us
Johnny
was
praying
that
earlier
right
that
the
very
ways
that
we
want
to
love
that's
how
God
loves
us
so
does
Jesus
care
about
your
sin
yeah
is
he
displeased
when
you
sin
yeah
does
he
want
us
to
grow
in
some
of
those
areas
that
have
been
struggles
for
a
long
time
yes
he
sure
does
but
he
loves
you
he's
patient
right
he's
long
suffering
and
he's
kind
he's
understanding
he's
not
caught
up
with
insisting
on
his
own
rights
and
having
you
do
what
he
wants
you
to
do
just
as
an
abstract
he
wants
you
to
live
that
life
for
your
good
he's
not
irritable
or
easily
angered
or
annoyed
or
cold
his
heart
to
you
if
you
can
imagine
is
exactly
in one
sense
we could
say
anyway
what
our
hearts
would
be
if
we
perfectly
love
someone
else
like
we
should
and
he
showed
us
that
love
hasn't
he
in the
cross
and
that
same
love
hasn't
changed
we
can't
we
can't
lose
sight
of
that
because
it's
really
as
we
drink
in
God's
love
that
our
hearts
are
warmed
and
enabled
to
love
others
the way
that
we
should
right
there's
no
other
way
beholding
love
is what
leads
to
loving
so we
need to
put on
love
and
show
love
but we
also
really
need
to
make
it
our
great
priority
to
behold
love
to
pray
God
show
me
open
my
heart
again
to
how
much
you
really
love
me
that's
not a
selfish
thing
to
pray
right
that's
in
one
sense
the
most
selfless
thing
we
can
pray
as
we
think
about
how
we
really
love
others
and
that's
where I
want to
leave
us
with
this
last
and
third
way
that
I
think
Paul
would
call
us
to
pursuing
love
and
that's
by
showing
by
beholding
and
last
by
praying
how
do
you
behold
love
think
about
Ephesians
3
right
Paul
says
God
show
me
the
breath
and
the
great
dimensions
of
your
love
for
me
in
Christ
so
that
I
can
be
filled
with
the
fullness
of
God
that's
what
I
need
I need
to
pray
and
ask
you
to
remind
me
to
open
my
heart
again
and
flood
it
with
affection
for
how
much
you
really
love
me
in
Christ
so
that
I
would
be
able
to
love
others
I
pray
God
help
me
to
love
my
church
help
me
to
love
my
wife
help
me
to
love
them
in
the
way
that
I
want
to
I
want
to
have
that
heart
that
compels
me
to
love
them
from
you
know
the
greatest
sacrifices
to
the
smallest
little
ways
that
I
can
serve
at
home
in
the
course
of
a
day
and
to
just
really
want
that
and
be
driven
to
it
and
I
want
to
interact
with
them
in
the
way
where
when
there's
such
love
filling
our
hearts
it
just
does
other
people
so
much
good
when
we
talk
with
them
and
minister
to
them
and
the
way
I
get
there
is
by
saying
God
teach
me
how
much
you
love
me
and
to
pray
for
that
to
make
that
our
prayer
maybe
something
we
should
pray
every
day
is
God
let
me
really
behold
your
love
for
me
remind
me
of
where
I
was
and
how
you
saved
me
right
remind
me
the
truth
of
my
sin
and
what
it
means
to
be
yours
to
pray
like
that
God
make
me
more
loving
by
beholding
your
love
this
text
tells
us
to
pursue
love
above
all other
things
to
pursue
love
by
showing
love
and
beholding
love
and
praying
for
love
I
just
want
to
leave
you
with
one
last
thought
here
as we
wrap
up
I
don't
know
if
you've
ever
read
anything
by
Jerry
Bridges
but
he's
a
well
he
was
he
passed
away
recently
but
he's
a
he
was
a
great
author
and
Bible
teacher
and
he
said
this
about
the
priority
of
love
he
said
you
can
write
down
either
in
your
imagination
or
on a
sheet
of
paper
a
row
of
zeros
and
you
keep
adding
zeros
until
you
fill
the
whole
line
on
the
page
what does
it
add
up to
exactly
nothing
right
even if
you were
to write
thousands
of
them
still
adds
up
to
nothing
but
you
put
one
positive
number
in
front
of
them
and
immediately
you
have
value
and
that's
how
it
is
with
our
gifts
and
abilities
and
our
zeal
they're
all
the
Don't count.
But you put love in front of them
and immediately they have value.
And just like if you add a number two
instead of a number one,
the more love that we grow in,
the exponentially more valuable
our gifts in our life will be.
So remember, it's not the number that comes first
or that comes after, excuse me.
The number that comes after the gifts
that the things that you have that matters
first and foremost.
First and foremost,
it's the number that comes first.
It's your love.
So hear this text today
where I think we can summarize it as
hearing be imitators of God as beloved children
and walk in love.
Beloved is who we are as Christians
and what we're called to be above all other things
as people that are learning to love
our neighbors like Christ has loved us.
Let me pray for us and pray that
God would really help us to do that.
our Father, we ask that
you would
help each one of us
Lord, that are Christians
to
freshly
grasp how much you love us.
Lord,
even this day,
this week,
we pray that you would
take us back to
who we were
and how you rescued us.
Lord, maybe
it's been a long time
since we've been walking with you
and we want to be refreshed
in
that simple truth
of just how much it means
to be yours.
Lord, we pray you would
brighten our
hearts and minds
with
this truth of your love
and Father, I pray that you would
not allow this
calling of ours
to be
people that love
to be lost
in
the course of so many other things
that we want to give
our life to
as Christians.
Lord, the great commandment
is to love you
and to love others
and we need your help
not just to grow in that love,
Father,
but to not lose sight of our calling.
So we pray for that,
Father.
I pray that this church
and the families
in this church,
people, Lord,
that they would really be
grown up more
and more and more
in their love for you
and their love for one another.
Help us to do that,
Father, we pray
in Jesus' name.
Amen.